A controversial effort to honor the life of fairy tale author Hans Christian Andersen with a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) festival in his native Denmark has sparked a row between local politicians and advocates.

As The Telegraph is reporting, the gay-themed, week-long Andersen celebration was the brainchild of Trine Bramsen, a member of the country's parliament, who believes the LGBT literary gala would attract more visitors to the town of Odense on the island of Funen, where the author was born in 1805. "There is so much palaver about Hans Christian Andersen's sexuality, and I think we should use it," she said, noting that she believed the event could also capitalize on the country's marriage equality law. "It should be a week where gays from all over the world can come to the island of Funen."...